Three teenagers have been killed and another seriously injured after a vehicle crashed into a brick buttress in Tyninghame near Dunbar, East Lothian.

David Armstrong, 16, Josh James-Stewart, 15, and Jenna Barbour, 18, have been named as the three fatalities, with survivor Robbie Gemmell, 16, taken to Edinburgh Royal Infirmary where he was receiving treatment yesterday.

They had been travelling along a stretch of road on the outskirts of Dunbar leading to the beach, with the collision happening at approximately 8:25 pm. Yesterday, small pieces of wreckage were visible at the scene and for 20 yards along the road. All four passengers had attended Dunbar Grammar School, with Jenna Barbour having just completed her sixth year and the other three in their fifth year.

Education spokesman for East Lothian Council, Shamin Akhtar, said: “Dunbar is a very close and strong community and very few young people at school will not have known at least one of the young people involved. A special assembly was held this morning with S5 and S6 to reflect on what had happened and to offer comfort and support. Teachers across the school are supporting young people and counselling services are also on hand. Students have been offered the opportunity to go home as long as there’s someone there to support them. However, many have opted to stay to seek support from their friends and staff.”

Akhtar said: “The grief will be felt for a long time and at the moment the school is focusing on supporting its young people and the families of those who died, and on sending our best wishes and thoughts for the recovery of the young person who survived this accident.”

Inspector Richard Latto of Police Scotland has appealed for any witness with information to come forward.

Inspector Latto said: “Our inquiries are ongoing as we try to piece together the circumstances which led to this tragedy. We are also focusing on working closely, supporting the families involved. A full collision investigation will be carried out looking at all factors such as looking for witnesses and the condition of the road and the vehicle. We are looking for any witnesses who saw the vehicle prior to the collision.”

Police have identified the person killed in an M8 collision as a 19-year-old man from Bathgate. The teenager was driving a Fiat Stilo, which collided with a MAN HGV at around 1 o’clock this morning. He died at the scene of the accident. The 39-year-old driver was not injured.

The collision happened on the eastbound carriageway of the M8, around one mile east of Harthill.

It is believed that the teenager was driving west on the eastbound carriageway before colliding with the HGV, which was heading east.

Inspector Richard Latto said: “At the moment we are working to establish the circumstances leading up to this collision, and would appeal for anyone who may have been in the area at the time, and who may have seen what happened, to contact police.

Police, Ambulance and Fire Service attended the crash.

A police spokesman said: “We are investigating the circumstances that resulted in this collision and would encourage any motorists who were on the road at the time to contact police immediately.”

“Similarly, anyone with any other information that can assist police with their enquiries ares also asked to come forward.”

Scotland’s busiest motorway experienced tailbacks this morning. Commuters were unaware of the crash which caused the delays.

Bus driver Jim Anderson, who was driving the route this morning, said “this has taken two and a half hours when normally it would take one. Accidents happen that often on this road, you’d think people would be more careful. But it just keeps happening.”

The M8 has now been cleared and commuters should no longer expect delays.

A passenger plane in Cuba has crashed in the centre of the country, killing all 68 people on board.

The Aerocaribbean aircraft had been flying from the eastern city of Santiago de Cuba to Havana when it crashed in mountains near the town of Guasimal.

A Civil Aviation Authority statement said that among the casualties were 40 Cuban residents, including the seven cabin crew, with the other 28 passengers coming from many countries, including Argentina, the Netherlands and Germany.

It is not yet clear if bad weather was a reason in the crash, but a tropical storm warning had been issued in Santiago de Cuba province where the plane took off.

A hurricane is growing in strength and heading towards Haiti, it is feared, threatening earthquake survivors living in temporary sites.

Hurricane Tomas is packing winds of 80mph (130 kph) and the US National Hurricane Centre says the eye of the hurricane will pass near western Haiti later today (Friday).

Aid agencies are rushing to get emergency shelters ready before the hurricane arrives, having already killed 14 people in Saint Lucia.

North America:

The Democrats have won the close race for the US Senate seat in Washington state in the mid-term polls.

Senator Patty Murray was twice joined by President Barrack Obama when campaigning in the run-up to the polls.

The result means the Republican surge was not enough to stop the Democrats who still have a slight majority, with 51 seats in the 100-member Senate.

The Tokyo male wore a prosthetic mask to board the flight

Authorities in Canada are investigating “an unbelievable case of concealment” after a Tokyo male boarded an Air Canada flight disguised as an elderly man.

The incident, which occurred on a flight from Tokyo to Vancouver last Friday, is believed to be an attempt to gain refugee protection.

Air Canada Corporate Security today said: “The passenger in question was observed at the beginning of the flight to be an elderly Caucasian male who appeared to have young looking hands. During the flight the subject attended the washroom and emerged an Asian looking male that appeared to be in his early 20s.”

South-east Asia:

Indonesia‘s Mount Merapi has erupted overnight killing at least 64 people, doubling the death toll since it became active again last week.

Hospital officials said more than 70 others were injured today suffering burns and respiratory problems, with many in a critical condition, after a gas cloud hit villages with even greater force than previously.

The latest eruption began late on Thursday but the location of today’s casualties was declared a safe zone until today.

Europe:

In Ireland, the cost of borrowing has hit record levels again after plans to slash €6bn (£5.2bn) in the upcoming budget, twice what was predicted three months ago, were announced.

Ireland’s cost of borrowing rose for the eighth day in a row hitting an historic high of 7.77%, with concerns rising that the country would seek a bailout in the new year

Finance minister Brian Lenihan conceded the cuts were worse than expected but allayed fears, stating the action was “deemed necessary and will underline the strength of our resolve and show the country is serious about tackling our public finance difficulties”.

A car crash in Co. Down has killed four policemen, the Police Service of Northern Ireland reported yesterday.

The two full-time and two part-time officers were travelling on a mountain road between Warrenpoint and Kikeel when they are thought to have collided with a stonewall on the Moygannon Road at approximately 4am on Sunday morning.

It is the worst single death toll for the PSNI since it was established seven years ago.